Do-it-yourself installation of a sink in a countertop: instructions

Sink - an indispensable element of the kitchen interior. Most foods have to be washed before use: vegetables and fruits, meat, fish and others. And after the meal you need to wash all the dishes. Installing a sink in a countertop is becoming increasingly popular, as well as all built-in appliances. The design of the kitchen looks neater and more expressive when the furniture and household appliances are one.

However, when purchasing a sink, it is important to consider not only its aesthetic qualities, but also functionality and reliability. For these characteristics to work as they should, installation knowledge is required. Installation by the master is not very cheap, especially in Moscow, so some people decide to do it with their own hands. About how to properly mount the sink on your own is described in this article.

Preparing for installation activities

Before carrying out installation work, you should prepare everything you need: tools, supplies and the sink itself. The countertop should already be installed in your kitchen. Moreover, it must match the material of the sink. Because tabletops of different size and composition have different load-bearing capacity, that is, the maximum load that it can withstand. Thus, stainless steel is suitable for thin countertops. If you have it stone, then the shell material (at least) is an artificial stone. Or you can pick up special holders that are installed in the nightstand under the platform.

What tools will be needed? It should be prepared: measuring instruments, an electric drill (or a jigsaw), several screwdrivers, an adjustable wrench, a construction knife, a gun for sealant. The required consumables are determined by the intended mounting method. You can make a universal list of what is useful in any case: screws, sealants and building glue. Also, do not forget about the plumbing, for the implementation of which you will need a siphon, a water supply hose and a mixer.

Markup Rules

An important stage during which the location of the sink in accordance with its dimensions will be clarified. Undoubtedly, we also build on the parameters of the selected sink, but there should be no contradictions with the standard rules for location and mounting.

Firstly, the cutting edge (the place where the sink and the worktop come in contact) should be at least 50 mm from the edge. This rule must be observed in spite of further installation methods.

The sink can be planted on glue or hardware. Only in both cases it is necessary to reduce the load on the edges. As an exception, a fragment with a rear end appears. Here, the distance to the cut can be even 25 mm. This is due to less pressure on the structure in this part. Do not forget when marking up communications (later they will be connected to the center point of the sink). They should pass freely to the sink to ensure water supply and drainage to the sewer.

Installing a sink with glue

This method of attaching the sink to the countertop is not the most reliable, but simple and quick. If you do everything well, the fit will be tight, then the mount can be quite durable. Before applying glue, treat the edges of the countertops in the areas of cut. For this, materials with finely abrasive particles are used (sandpaper, fine grinding wheel). Then we lay out the sealant from polyethylene, which often comes with the product in the kit.

We warn that the glue method is only suitable for installing stainless steel sinks, but not stone. They can move, breaking fixation. Glue solution is applied both to areas in the future in contact with the countertop, as well as to its edges. It will be possible to use the kitchen only after the composition has completely crystallized.

Mortise and surface sinks - differences in installation

This provides installation instructions for these two types of sinks. We analyze the installation of mortise washing in stages.

1. The kit usually contains cardboard templates, if not, use the sink itself. Mark the template on the finished countertop or on a separate module that allows the installation of embedded elements. We fix with tape in several parts. Do not forget that the sink does not touch the sidewalls and struts.
2. Determine the location of the sink on the work surface. Approach this responsibly, because ease of use depends on it. The normal distance from the edge of the table is from 5 to 10 cm. Draw the outline of the template. Then, retreating 1.5 cm, draw another contour. On it we will cut a hole.
3. We drill holes according to intelligence with an electric drill. The diameter of the drill is usually standard (10-12 mm), we select on the canvas of the drill. Then we pass along the perimeter with a jigsaw.
4. Before attaching the sink to the countertop, we clear the place of sawdust and dust, process it with sandpaper.
5. We got a hole, now we insert a sink into it, we check whether the edges are cut accurately and that the sides fit well. We also look at the mixer and flexible hoses, because it is problematic to repair them with the installed sink.
6. On the inside of the hole, we process the silicone-based edge of the countertop with a sealant to protect it from moisture.
7. On the edge of the sawn place (on the front side of the countertop) we apply double-sided tape. In the absence of it in the kit, apply the sealant again.
8. Now the insert of the sink is directly carried out. Try to press firmly to the edges so that all the cracks are filled with sealant. With the help of fasteners we tighten from below. We do this sequentially: we pull the corners diagonally not to the stop. In the same way, we drag the mounting faults in the middle. We remove excess tape and sealant.

To have a more accurate presentation will help the video on how to properly sink the sink into the countertop.

Now consider how to fix the sink invoice.

1. The easiest method is attaching to it. We install an overhead sink on a special nightstand. It should completely cover the sides of the cabinet, and its width does not exceed the width of the table. The ends of the latter are treated with silicone sealant. We put and press the sink. It will be firmly fixed after drying the sealed material, which will be excellent protection against moisture.
2. Fasteners for mounting brackets. In a standard situation, special mounts are used, which are included (you can buy separately). We screw the screws from the inside of the cabinet, then we bait the brackets on them. Now tighten a few screws. We install our object and shift the angle of attachment along the screw, trying to fix the self-tapping screw in the corner to completely press the sink to the base. At the end, we screw the screws to the end.
3. Fixing with wooden blocks. If there are defects in the countertops, there are no fasteners at all, then the standard installation method will not work. In this case, we take wooden blocks and furniture corners and create an installation site. The bars can be lowered into the box. Then we attach the corners along the perimeter. We put the design on the bedside table. From the inner walls of the table we fasten the rest of the corners. So that the top of the sink is flush with the pedestals, the height of the bars can be adjusted.

We tighten the fasteners exclusively by hand so as not to deform or overtighten the sink.

To install directly to the wall without a pedestal, we use special brackets on the sink. We make two markings of different heights (the first is 80 cm, the second is slightly lower). This will be the bracket mounting line. We drill holes in the wall, fix the brackets.

Connection of a sink to communications

First of all, cold and hot water hoses are connected from two sides: to the mixer, to the water channel. The junction of the first must necessarily contain a heater made of rubber. Next we introduce the siphon issue. It is better to choose a curved type, because bottle ones get dirty quickly. A sewer pipe is brought to the siphon.

If installation was made not of ceramic or metal sinks, but of artificial stone, then the communication material should be the most durable and tough. For example, the pipe is a reinforced angular structure. At the end, we check all the joints and, if necessary, provide them with sealing cuffs.

Conclusion

To prevent repairs from coming to a high price, carefully plan the purchase of the necessary tools and materials, study photos and videos on the Internet so that you do not have to call specialists for rectification of the situation. Observing all the rules, you can achieve an excellent result without outside help.

Video: do-it-yourself sink installation